The present disclosure relates generally to oil and gas well separation systems and, more specifically, to a compact surface-based separation assembly.
Hydraulic fracturing, commonly known as fracing, is a technique used to release petroleum, natural gas, and other hydrocarbon-based substances for extraction from underground reservoir rock formations, especially for unconventional reservoirs. The technique includes drilling a wellbore into the rock formations, and pumping a treatment fluid into the wellbore, which causes fractures to form in the rock formations and allows for the release of trapped substances produced from these subterranean natural reservoirs.
At least some known treatment fluids are formed at least partially from water, and the water is sometimes released from the fractures and backflows into the wellbore such that a mixture of water and released hydrocarbon-based substances is formed. The water and hydrocarbon-based substances are then separated from each other such that the hydrocarbon-based substances can be recovered for subsequent refinement. In addition, the water and hydrocarbon-based substances can be separated within the wellbore or at ground level. Separating the produced fluids at ground level, rather than downhole within the wellbore, typically requires larger, more expensive equipment and more energy than separating the produced fluids downhole within the well. Moreover, ground-based separation facilities typically have a low hydraulic efficiency, defined by separated liquid flow as a function of total separator vessel volume, such that the performance of the facility and characteristics of the fluid obtained from the wellbore are difficult to determine in real time.